Tag Archives: Mysuru

The Golden Chariot is all set to restart its operations from 22nd March, after almost a two-year break. The train completed a decade’s run in 2018. The marketing and operations of the luxury train was given to the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) in November 2019 after the KSTDC signed an agreement. The train was discontinued temporarily in 2018 after the Government took note of the ₹41 crore losses the train had incurred. The train would run three tours – two existing routes, and a third one – a short trip of three nights. The next season onwards from October, the train will start running all three – Pride of Karnataka, Southern Splendour, and a third new route of four days and three nights that covers Bengaluru, Mysuru, Bandipur, Chikkamagaluru, Hampi and back. Badami and Goa have been excluded. This tour is aimed at giving the chariot experience to more people at a reduced cost. The train has gone through a refurbishment both in external design as well as in interiors. IRCTC will be launching publicity of the train in the upcoming ITB Berlin.

In a latest development, the Hotel Owners’ Association (HOA) of Mysuru has decided that 400 of its hotel members will block their inventory to Goibibo and MakeMyTrip (Go-MMT) unless the OTAs agree to the terms put forth by the association. The association had recently convened a meeting of its members in the city to regulate terms of operation with the OTAs and hotel aggregators and put an end to exorbitant commissioning and deep discounting tactics. Last month, hotels in Sikkim under the Sikkim Hotels & Restaurants Association (SHRA) terminated their contracts with Go-MMT after the OTAs did not meet the terms outlined by the association. Since December of 2018, several hotels across the country have voiced concerns and in some cases stopped conducting business with the erring Online Travel Aggregators (OTAs) and OYO. “The OTAs and OYO are destroying the very fabric of hospitality under the guise of disruption. They are literally bullying hoteliers, flexing their muscles with seemingly unlimited funds, access to technology and consumer data. Hotels took their bait of increased revenues and rates which today has given them a free hand at employing predatory pricing policies. The indiscriminate discounts offered to customers, outlandish commissions and Performance Linked Bonuses (PLBs) demanded from hotels, hijacking their online and offline brand and business resources, misrepresenting the actual rate received from guests, pitting one hotel against another and other below the belt tactics have left many hoteliers desolate,” says Sooryah P, President, Association of Indian Hotels and Serviced Apartments, Bangalore. Hotels have alleged that the OTAs as well as OYO have no regard for a hotel’s operations, outgoing costs and sustenance. HOA has stated that the OTAs do not factor in the high …